Thursday, September 29, 2011

"The death penalty system in our country is unjust and outdated."

The execution of death row inmate Troy Davis in Georgia shows that the nation's death penalty system is "unjust and outdated," former President Jimmy Carter said following Davis' death.

The Georgia Democrat said Thursday in a statement to The Associated Press that he hopes "this tragedy will spur us as a nation toward the total rejection of capital punishment."

Davis was executed late Wednesday night for the 1989 murder of off-duty Savannah police officer Mark MacPhail. His supporters insist he was the victim of mistaken identity, while prosecutors and MacPhail's family said justice was finally served after four years of delays.

Carter says "if one of our fellow citizens can be executed with so much doubt surrounding his guilt, then the death penalty system in our country is unjust and outdated."

Davis maintained his innocence until the end.

"All I can ask ... is that you look deeper into this case so that you really can finally see the truth. I ask my family and friends to continue to fight this fight," he said moments before he was executed Wednesday night...